Health benefits open enrollmentBenefit-eligible faculty and staff may enroll in or make changes to health, dental and vision plans, Flex Cash, Dependent Care (DCRA) and Health Care Reimbursement (HCRA) from Oct. 10 to Nov. 4. Forms must be received by Friday, Nov. 4. Open enrollment will also include the CSU Voluntary Benefits Plans, MetLaw, Aflac, The Standard and California Casualty. Changes made during open enrollment will go into effect Jan. 1, 2012.

Employees currently enrolled in DCRA and HCRA programs must re-enroll for the 2012 tax year during this open enrollment period. Visit the Human Resources, Safety and Risk Management website at www.sfsu.edu/~hrwww for more information.

Volunteer for Discovery Day Volunteers are needed to staff various activities at Romberg Tiburon Center's (RTC) annual Discovery Day open house on Sunday, Oct. 30. Volunteers work in 3-hour shifts between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. and receive a free T-shirt and lunch (include shirt size when signing up). There is no scheduled public transit to RTC, so also reserve a space on the free SF State shuttle (departs SF State parking garage at 8:30 a.m. and returns at 4:30 p.m., space is limited). For more information, contact Erin Blackwood at erinb@rtc.sfsu.edu or call ext. 8-3757 by Oct. 10.

Working group on Latino educational progressThe Office of Research and Sponsored Programs and the César E. Chávez Institute invite the campus community to a meeting on research and Latino educational progress on Friday, Oct. 21, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in ADM 460. The lunch will be of interest to faculty with research interests in Latino educational progress (preschool through higher education) and administrators of campus programs serving Latino students. The round table conversation will include idea sharing as well as identifying potential funding sources and common needs. It is hoped that a permanent University-wide working group to foster research and program development will emerge. Pizza and refreshments will be provided. Interested persons should contact the César E. Chávez Institute at cci@sfsu.edu

Emergency training scheduled
Emergency training workshops on the subject of "Active Shooter Awareness" have been scheduled for three consecutive days with morning and afternoon sessions: Oct. 18, 19 and 20, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. and 2 to 3:30 p.m. in the Towers Conference Center. Early registration for these free events is encouraged, as space is limited. To register, e-mail your preferred training date and time to Katon Dalton at kdalton@sfsu.edu

Student, staff and faculty participants will learn the skills and strategies needed to survive threats to campus safety, specifically the threat of an active gunman. The acclaimed presentations of the UC Davis Police Training Team are sponsored by the Office of Emergency Services and Human Resources Safety and Risk Management.

Join Sigma Xi
Faculty are invited to apply for membership in the SF State chapter of Sigma Xi, the national research society. The goals of Sigma Xi are to advance scientific research, encourage cooperation among scientists in all disciplines and assist the wider understanding of science. Contact Darlene Yee at dyee@sfsu.edu for an application and information.

Vice President for Administration and Finance searchThe campus community is invited to meet with the following candidates for Vice President for Administration and Finance:

David Seward, chief financial officer, Hastings College of Law, University of California. Monday, Oct. 10 from 3 to 4 p.m.

Charles Ingram, associate vice president for Financial Services, University of Arizona. Tuesday, Oct. 11 from 3 to 4 p.m.

Lorraine Hoffman, vice president for Business and Finance, California State University, Chico. Wednesday, Oct. 12 from 4 to 5 p.m.

All events will be held in Rosa Parks A-C in the lower level of the Cesar Chavez Student Center.

Google Fall Webinar SeriesAcademic Technology has partnered with CSU Academic Technology Services and Google to offer the Google Fall Webinar Series. The twice-monthly Web-based seminars will cover various aspects of online searches. The series will begin Oct. 21 from 9 to 10:15 a.m. on power searching and the Advanced Google search for education and how to use the advanced predictive search to efficiently uncover source material and organize it for presentations and documents.

Other upcoming Google webinars include:

Modern search literacy: leveraging literacy to get quality from popular tools (Nov. 4)

Believe it or not: authority and credibility of search results (Nov. 18)

Group viewing of the webinars will be held at BH 168. Each session will be followed by discussion and an Academic Technology-facilitated Q&A period. Seating is limited, so early reservation is encouraged at http://power.sfsu.edu or e-mail workshop@sfsu.edu

CalPERS changesCalPERS has launched a new integrated system that replaces 49 legacy systems. As CalPERS and its 2,500 member agencies adjust to the new system, there may be longer wait times when contacting the CalPERS toll-free telephone number (888) 225-7377 and slight delays completing certain transactions, such as health enrollments (including COBRA), service credit estimates and service credit purchases. Performance is expected to improve over the next couple of weeks. CalPERS will do everything possible to provide customer support during this adjustment period. For example, signed and submitted HBD-12 forms will be processed and coverage will be effective with the date stated on the form.

Benefits-eligible new hires and returning faculty who expected medical coverage to begin either Sep. 1 or Oct. 1, and who are in need of immediate medical coverage due to a critical need (i.e., treatment for a chronic or serious illness, prescription drug refill, etc.), should contact the appropriate Benefits Coordinator:

Statewide (CSU) Senators Andrea Boyle, Martin Linder and Darlene Yee-Melichar answered questions on CSU Academic Senate issues raised during the Sept. 20 plenary. Of the points brought to the floor, those considered important for the campus were:

Campus visits by candidates for president

Triggers in the state budget

What our students need to learn

We need to be pro-active and look to shared governance for leadership

Educational principles for online education and those to which faculty should adhere

Transfer student legislation

Heard an update from CFA President Wei Ming Dariotis regarding current contract negotiations and associated concerns, November actions surrounding bargaining, the development of more effective avenues of communications, the nature and status of CFA constitutional revisions (e.g., draft available in early spring) and concerted action on Nov. 17 with CSU East Bay and CSU Dominguez Hills.

The importance of knowing the components of the Task Force Reports, for example, policies related to transfer students, general education, program discontinuance/suspension and the implications the changes have for current policies

The benefits of inviting Task Force members to discuss the report and the aspects of campus resources upon which the decisions are made, next steps to take, available resources and identifying those in charge of the changes

Status of the UPAC committee

Status of the reports and a vision for the Task Force reports

Task Force reports will provide deans with targets and concerns regarding the contingency of general education on Business Relations Center progress

How to address consistency in general education

Direction of the process from this point, the order to follow moving forward and the kind of conclusion that can be reached regarding general education

There is a need for an overall policy on curriculum and the willingness of the Curriculum Review and Approval Committee to address the need for a comprehensive curriculum development policy, which would be an important contribution to the overall campus policy

Discussed the Faculty Affairs Committee recommendation on proposed revisions to the Policy on Department Chairs and Equivalent Unit Directors, #S00-145, in first reading

Elected by acclamation Courtney Donovan, Geography and Human Environmental Studies, to a temporary appointment on the Board of Appeals and Review

Discussed the Executive Committee recommendation on the proposed Resolution in Support of Principles of Shared Governance in Reorganization, first reading

Participants sought for online teaching evaluations
The Academic Senate is conducting a fall 2011 pilot project to test online delivery of students' evaluations of teaching. Full professors who are teaching two or more sections of the same course and would like to participate in this pilot project should contact senate@sfsu.edu by Oct. 14.

Distinguished Faculty Award nominations open
Each year, the Academic Senate acknowledges outstanding faculty members for their extraordinary, meaningful and lasting contributions in the areas of teaching, professional achievement and service. The awards, which include a stipend, a commemorative plaque and a certificate, are designed to highlight and showcase examples of the consistently exceptional work of the SF State faculty.

The deadline for nominations is Friday, Feb. 3, 2012. To nominate yourself or a colleague, visit the Academic Senate website at www.sfsu.edu/~senate Questions? Contact the Senate office at ext. 8-1264 or senate@sfsu.edu

Senate meeting dates are posted on the University Web calendar and on the Senate website at www.sfsu.edu/~senate

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Click on the link for each event to view full listing in the University Calendar.

About CampusMemoCampusMemo is published weekly during the school year by University Communications and provides
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This publication is available in alternative
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